Merkel and Macron Promise to Set EU Reform Plan by mid-December

“We must do a great deal by May next year to achieve a more united, more sovereign and more efficient Europe, which we so urgently need”, the French President said during his visit to Berlin. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron intend to submit proposals for EU reform to their European partners until mid-December. The leaders of both countries said this on Sunday, November 18, during a meeting in the Office of the German Chancellor in Berlin, where Makron arrived on the occasion of the National Day of Mourning. Now we need to “really present certain results”, the Chancellor explained on the sidelines of the meeting. “We must do a great deal by May next year to achieve a more united, more sovereign and more efficient Europe”, said the French President before meeting with the German Chancellor, noting the need for an appropriate German-French agreement. At the end of May, elections to the European Parliament will be held in the EU countries. “We are at a crossroads” “You said we are at a crossroads. This is exactly what I perceive”, Merkel told the French president at a joint press conference. She called it “very symbolic” that a week ago, together with Macron in France, she took part in a ceremony to mark the end of the First World War, and now he came to Berlin on the occasion of the National Day of Mourning, annual day of victims of war in Germany. Macron, speaking in the Bundestag, in particular, noted that “the new German-French task is to provide Europe with the tools necessary for gaining greater independence”. What do EU reforms imply? The proposed EU reforms include, inter alia, the establishment of a shared budget for the 19 eurozone member countries and the creation of a European Monetary Fund based on the European Stabilization Mechanism. The introduction of the so-called digital tax for large corporations remains controversial. The EU Summit will take place on December 13 and 14 in Brussels. Observers note that there is no much time left for reforms, as they may be hampered by the UK leaving the EU in March 2019 and the possible victory of right-wing populists in the elections to the European Parliament. Source: DW